ANGKOR HERITAGE TOURISM AND TOURIST PERCEPTIONS

The paper examines tourist perceptions and experiences through conducting survey based on the standard questionnaire. It argues that tourist perception is positive and their experiences are beyond expectations based on cultural enrichment and local people friendliness plus local hospitality facilities. The type of tourists visiting Angkor can be generally categorized as cultural tourists. Their motives and experiences are intertwined. Although tourists are satisfied with their visit, there are some concerns especially the issues of environmental pollution, sanitation and cleanliness, local poverty, and language barriers, which lead to lack of communication between tourists and local people.